Petition of Murphy Motor Freight Lines

428 N.W.2d 467, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 849, 1988 WL 88476
CourtCourt of Appeals of Minnesota
DecidedAugust 30, 1988
DocketC4-88-567
StatusPublished

This text of 428 N.W.2d 467 (Petition of Murphy Motor Freight Lines) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Petition of Murphy Motor Freight Lines, 428 N.W.2d 467, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 849, 1988 WL 88476 (Mich. Ct. App. 1988).

Opinion

OPINION

NIERENGARTEN, Presiding Judge.

The Minnesota Transportation Regulation Board (Board) approved the sale of a regular route common carrier certificate of authority from Murphy Freight Lines, Inc. (Murphy) to Quast Transfer, Inc. (Quast). The Board imposed several conditions on Quast and Quast appeals these conditions. We affirm.

FACTS

Murphy was a major regular route common carrier of freight in Minnesota. In February 1987, Murphy filed for bankruptcy, and agreed to sell Quast its regular route common carrier certificate of authority for $201,000. The administrative law judge (ALJ) recommended approving the petition, allowing Quast to tack its regular route authority but not including irregular route authority.

After Quast’s petition for transfer was submitted, the Board, acting on a separate complaint, revoked Quast’s irregular route common petition for willfully operating as a regular route carrier under irregular route authority. See Quast v. Minnesota Transportation Regulation Board, 428 N.W.2d 462 (Minn.Ct.App.1988). The AU ruled that Quast’s fitness was not at issue in the transfer proceeding. The Board disagreed and allowed the record of the Quast complaint case to be incorporated into this case.

The Board ultimately approved Murphy’s petition to transfer the regular route authority to Quast but, based on its determination that Quast willfully disregarded regulatory authority in the past, imposed five conditions on the transfer:

1. That Quast was on probation for a period of three years from the date of service of the order with any violation of the laws or regulations to constitute grounds for mandatory revocation of the transferred certificate;
2. That Quast was to be subject to random audit checks by the Department of Transportation (MNDOT) Office of Safe *469 ty and Compliance with a mandatory audit at least every 6 months;
3. That Quast was to submit to the Board within 45 days of the order specific routing tables for regular route operations in the Counties of Scott, Sibley, Stearns, Pope, Douglas, Grant, Traverse, Stevens and Wright Counties;
4. That Quast was to consult with MNDOT and TRB regulatory authorities relative to applicable motor carrier rules and regulations;
5. That Quast’s tariff which guaranteed overnight delivery was revoked.

Quast appeals, arguing the order is arbitrary, capricious and unsupported by substantial evidence.

ISSUE

Was the Board’s imposition of conditions on the transfer of a regular route permit arbitrary and capricious and unsupported by substantial evidence?

ANALYSIS

Scope of Review

First of all, we must presume the Board’s decision is correct and we are required to defer to “the agencies’ expertise and their special knowledge in the field of their technical training, education, and experience.” Reserve Mining Co. v. Herbst, 256 N.W.2d 808, 824 (Minn.1977).

We may affirm the decision of the agency or remand the case for further proceedings. We may also reverse or modify the decision:

if the substantial rights of the petitioners may have been prejudiced because the administrative finding, inferences, conclusion, or decisions are:

(a) In violation of constitutional provisions; or
(b) in excess of the statutory authority or jurisdiction of the agency; or
(c) Made upon unlawful procedure; or
(d) Affected by other error of law; or
(e) Unsupported by substantial evidence in view of the entire record as submitted; or
(f)Arbitrary or capricious.

Minn.Stat. § 14.69 (1986).

In order to comply with these statutory requirements, we must determine whether the agency is acting quasi-judicially or in its legislative capacity since the standard of review differs.

“(a) When the Public Service Commission acts in a judicial capacity as a fact-finder, receives evidence in order to make factual conclusions, and weighs that evidence as would a judge in a court trial, it will be held on review to the substantial-evidence standard.
“(b) When the Public Service Commission acts in a legislative capacity as in rate increase allocations, balancing both cost and noncost factors and making choices among public policy alternatives, its decisions will be upheld unless shown to be in excess of statutory authority or resulting in unjust, unreasonable, or discriminatory rates by clear and convincing evidence.” (Italics supplied.)

Arvig Telephone Co. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co., 270 N.W.2d 111, 116 (Minn.1978) (quoting St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce v. Minnesota Public Service Commission, 312 Minn. 250, 262, 251 N.W.2d 350, 358 (1977)). When a board considers matters of public convenience and necessity, it is acting in its legislative capacity. Arvig, 270 N.W.2d at 116-17. The statute authorizing an initial certificate for operation as a regular route common carrier considers public convenience and necessity. When the Board acts on a sale or transfer of a certificate, those concerns similar to an initial issuance need be addressed, and thus the Board is acting legislatively. Consequently, the Board decision can only be overturned if it is “demonstrated to be unjust or unlawful by clear and convincing evidence.” Id. at 117.

Applicable Law

The Board must consider whether the transfer of a certificate will adversely affect the rights of the users of the service or have an adverse effect on any other motor carrier. See Minn.Stat. § 221.081 *470 (1986). Quast is appealing the conditions the Board placed on Quast’s regular route authority as part of the transfer approval. Quast maintains these restrictions are unlawful, arbitrary and capricious, unsupported by substantial evidence and barred by principles of res judicata or collateral estoppel.

Arbitrary and Capricious
In its memorandum, the Board indicated: [TJhis carrier has shown a lack of willingness to submit to regulatory authority.

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Related

Reserve Mining Co. v. Herbst
256 N.W.2d 808 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1977)
Arvig Telephone Co. v. Northwestern Bell Telephone Co.
270 N.W.2d 111 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1978)
State Ex Rel. Turnbladh v. DISTRICT COURT OF RAMSEY COUNTY
107 N.W.2d 307 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1960)
Quast Transfer, Inc. v. Minnesota Transportation Regulation Board
428 N.W.2d 462 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1988)
St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce v. Minnesota Public Service Commission
251 N.W.2d 350 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1977)

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Bluebook (online)
428 N.W.2d 467, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 849, 1988 WL 88476, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/petition-of-murphy-motor-freight-lines-minnctapp-1988.